The Ed-Fi Alliance and IMS Global Learning Consortium are actively working toward the full-scale adoption of interoperability standards—bringing together IMS learning technology standards with Ed-Fi data standards. Join us in discussing how these standards organizations are collaborating on high need areas such as integrated digital content, assessment, learning analytics, competency-based education and digital credentials to support and benefit school systems and solution providers across the education field.

Student-centered learning is achievable when technology works together to ease the way. K-12 districts are establishing technology ecosystems that allow for flexibility and choice, in selecting the digital tools and learning resources that educators want and students need, and enabling them to work together seamlessly. Getting to this pervasive ecosystem requires leadership, collaboration, and a strategy for how to apply technology at scale to improve and personalize instruction without costly customized integrations of online content and resources. Learn what leaders and innovators in K-12 are doing to achieve their educational objectives by moving from a glut of digital tools operating in silos to an educational technology ecosystem that allows educators to implement new instructional strategies and supports the evolution to next-generation personalized learning.

Technology and Leadership to Support Personalization

Tuesday, March 13

8:00-9:00 a.m.

Room: Cardozo

How are we doing when it comes to delivering learning that is applicable (relevant) for our students' college, work and life readiness? Single sign-on and transferring data between systems alleviates teachers' overbooked schedules. But, what kinds of technology provide "voice, choice, and data to inform and modify learning", the cornerstones of personalization and Universal Design for Learning (UDL)? In the first part of this session, we will discuss which specific technology solutions provide options to make learning flexible and effective, provide assessment "as" learning, and assessment "of" learning. In the second part, we will discuss how to implement them successfully, including building new processes in collaboration with all stakeholders.

Ensuring Student Privacy While Enabling Exponential Change

Tuesday, March 13

8:00-9:00 a.m.

Room: Gunston West

Come learn how districts are leveraging the power of alliances and consortium to address student data privacy concerns in an online world. District leaders from TX, CA, MA, WI and MD will discuss and demonstrate how the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC) enables districts in their states to support transformation in their schools. Operational privacy issues can impede innovative and transformative practices in the classroom. Streamlining best practices and affecting the marketplace s through large alliances of districts and vendors can greatly improve any district's ability to support innovative and flexible learning tools in the classroom. The SDPC is now comprised of 16 + states, thousands of districts, and many vendors. Come learn how the SDPC is improving student privacy operations in leading districts across the country.

Thinking Out Cloud: Migrate and Innovate in Record Time

Tuesday, March 13

8:00-9:00 a.m.

Room: Jefferson East

How do you take the migraine out of migration? How to convince stakeholders that the cloud is the way forward for your education organization? In this lively panel discussion, you will learn how to leverage the full power of the cloud to better serve students through personalization. You will also acquire valuable tips and tricks for devising an actionable and scalable cloud strategies. Participants will gain insights from other K12 leaders about the best approaches to Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).

McGraw-Hill Education - Personalizing Professional Learning

Tuesday, March 13

9:15-9:45 a.m.

Room: Gunston East

True district transformation starts with professional learning. Strong PD helps align educators around a shared understanding of instructional trends such as blended learning. This panel will focus on how technology can help educators experience a more personalized approach to professional learning. Using the experiences of one district, panelists will examine the opportunities and challenges involved in taking a fresh approach to the delivery and consumption of professional learning for educators. Personalized learning enables teachers and students to co-create learning environments that can provide many onramps to understanding. Teachers often find that students who don't shine in one learning activity may in another. Co-creation is an opportunity for students to learn about grit, growth mindset, setting goals, and learning tools, addressing the needs of ALL students.

SAFARI Montage - How to Design a Digital Learning Ecosystem that Works

Tuesday, March 13

9:15-9:45 a.m.

Room: Morgan

Teachers and students have unprecedented access to digital tools and content, but how can a district leader ensure that this abundance of resources will lead to success? In this session, review the aspects of an effective digital learning ecosystem and discover why a Learning Object Repository (LOR) is an essential component. Explore how a LOR integrates with all of these resources, from curated OERs and licensed content to live school news broadcasts, classroom camera and recorded lectures. Hear how districts are seamlessly integrating their LORs with Learning Management Systems (LMSs), Google, Microsoft, and other digital tools to enrich lessons and personalize learning. See how a LOR provides easy access to standards-based digital content; saves instructional time when searching for resources; and empowers educators to design compelling digital instruction to help students achieve academic success.

Making the data meaningful...When you have the data!

Tuesday, March 13

10:00-11:00 a.m.

Room: Fairchild

Learn how districts representing over 1 million students have collected and are taking advantage of the usage data for all their digital resources. Join a collaborative session to share how using a comprehensive data set that shows the usage on all Apps, Web sites, and applications from every device, including Chrome, iOS, Mac, and WIN could help drive the instructional process.

Managing IT in a Crisis

Tuesday, March 13

10:00-11:00 a.m.

Room: Jay

Having a crisis in a school or district that affects IT is not uncommon: being prepared for managing in a crisis should be common. Come join panelists as they share ideas in planning for, and mitigating during, crisis situations. Whether challenges are massive floods, hurricanes, wildfires, or ransom situations, pre-planning and thoughtful system design for redundancy are prudent steps.

Tech and People: Designing Learning Experiences for the 4th Revolution

Tuesday, March 13

11:15-11:45 a.m.

Room: Fairchild

A digital learning ecosystem is an environment where people and technology build and support a comprehensive, user-friendly, resource-rich, flexible learning space. Education leaders are working hard to build coherent ecosystems that address the complex needs of 21st Century Education. In parallel, teachers continue to work tirelessly and apply their best efforts to ensure that students succeed. An unintended consequence to these efforts - little or no time available for PD on strategic use, and potential pedagogical value of these digital ecosystems. Escambia County School District figured out how to support best teaching and learning practices while also giving users time to familiarize themselves with the technology. This workshop will provide participants with hands-on "deeper learning" and collaborative learning activities. Participants will review resources within a digital learning ecosystem, review best practices for bringing those resources together, and learn the first steps for building their own digital learning ecosystem.

Academic IoT: Sensors, Big Data, and Recommendation Engines

Tuesday, March 13

11:15-11:45 a.m.

Room: Gunston East

What is the Internet of Things (IoT) and how does it impact the academic ecosystem? How can we apply components of the IoT to educational applications and environments to start building foundations of true personalized learning for students? During the session, participants will explore concepts like "sensor", "big-data", and "recommendation-engine", and how they will get applied to an academic ecosystem to align technology with student performance to drive instruction. As the amount of data that is available to districts increases, are you prepared to capture what you need to transform the educational experience for your students?

ClassLink - ROI Case Studies: The Impact of Access and Analytics

Tuesday, March 13

3:15-3:45 p.m.

Room: Morgan

This session will feature case studies from Forsyth County (GA) and other CoSN delegates that will explore issues related to access and utilization. Through presentation and facilitated discussion, attendees will explore: - How and why districts are moving towards next generation platforms to enable access - Ways in which access to digital resources can impact the full teaching and learning lifecycle, from in-class and at-home engagement to teacher connectivity and parental involvement - The role that utilization analytics can have in informing strategic level decisions, from investment priorities to instructional design This session will feature the first-hand experiences of districts that leveraged Single Sign-On and Analytics platforms to change the way they plan, deploy, and evaluate digital learning resources. Please come with your own ideas and be ready to take away ideas from your colleagues.

In order to provide high quality, data secure resources for instructional staff, multiple departments within Baltimore County Public Schools come together to evaluate offerings and create policies. BCPS has created a well-defined path for staff to follow in order to request software and services for district-wide usage. The organization of this partnership has been applied to application for the CoSN Trusted Learning Environment, oversight of the BCPS Learning Management System and Data Governance. Participants in this session will gain understanding of the BCPS organization around digital resources as well as processes BCPS has put in place to create organizational efficiency.

Presenters: James Corns, Baltimore County Public Schools, Director of Digital Safety and Innovation; Mrs. Jeanne Imbriale, Baltimore County Public Schools, Director of Enterprise Applications

We See the Light in Dark Fiber

Wednesday, March 14

10:30-11:30 a.m.

Room: Cardozo

Houston ISD's vision was to design a next generation network (NGWAN) that would propel the district into the future connecting all HISD campuses and facilities to support digital learning for all students. Focusing on the core backbone and connectivity to campuses was paramount. Resiliency, Reliability, and Expandability were key components taken into account for the HISD NGWAN. Participants will hear from HISD's Infrastructure and E-Rate Technology teams surrounding various aspects of the NGWAN design, decision to lease dark fiber and the lessons learned when applying for E-Rate reimbursement. The team will expound upon the process and procedures that were followed, as well as some challenges the district encountered after the RFP was awarded and installation/special construction began. In addition, the team will share issues experienced and solutions garnered in the process of seeking E-Rate funding for the project.

It's All About You and How You Learn - Explore Micro-Credentials

Wednesday, March 14

10:30 AM - 11:30 a.m.

Room: Holmead East

Education leaders seek the most up-to-date and relevant professional learning to target their individual needs, accommodate their busy schedules, and continue their growth whether it is in an informal or formal setting. Interested in how micro-credentials can be a part of educators' professional learning journeys? Hear how Baltimore County Public Schools and Coxsackie-Athens Central School District are implementing a robust micro-credentialing program to redefine how teachers are demonstrating their competencies. Also, learn about how CoSN's two stacks of micro-credentials - Student Data Privacy and Digital Equity - support school leaders as they establish a culture of powerful digital learning that will prepare students for vibrant futures. Through their flexibility, personalization, and skill-based focus, micro-credentials are a tremendous benefit for an ever-evolving profession.

As school districts develop digital video distribution systems to meet the needs of today's teachers and students, they need to consider evolving video standards and ADA compliance within their design. Discover how Baltimore County Public Schools successfully mastered these challenges by upgrading their existing IPTV & live media streaming system to meet ADA compliance regulations and new video standards. Learn how they have moved their system to a district head-end model for more centralized control and are introducing closed captioning for all Digital TV and live video streams, such as school board meetings, going forward.

CTOs must partner across functional areas and departmental lines to foster district transformation through technology integration. The role of the CTO is evolving - no longer are CTOs just leading operations-focused departments - they must ensure coherent adoption of technology to support schools and departments to achieve instructional and strategic priorities. With experience leading technology divisions in Boston and most recently in San Francisco, Topics will be explored such as: - Building bridges with other departments in supporting the integration of digital content - Challenges a CTO faces entering a new education system - Recommendations for other CTOs to prioritize their time when working in a new district - The importance of context: surprises and "ah-ha" moments - How to prepare a district for a digital future